UCSF Retains Position as Top Public Recipient of NIH Funding

Pan-Yu Chen, a postdoctoral scholar, works in the in the lab of Kevin Shannon, MD. Shannon received National Institutes of Health funding in 2017 for cancer research. Photo by Barbara Ries

In 2017, UC San Francisco received more biomedical research funding from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) than any other public institution, continuing a seven-year trend, according to annual figures from the NIH. In addition, UCSF was the second-highest grant recipient among all public and private institutions nationwide.

UCSF’s Schools of Medicine and Pharmacy ranked first among their peers nationwide in NIH funding for their biomedical research and graduate-level training, while the Schools of Dentistry and Nursing ranked second in their fields.

Overall, researchers in the University’s four schools of Dentistry, Medicine, Nursing, and Pharmacy, the majority of whom are also affiliated with the UCSF Graduate Division’s doctoral and postdoctoral training programs, were awarded $593.9 million in NIH grants and research contracts in 2017, comprising a 2.8 percent increase over 2016.

These highly competitive funds enable UCSF scientists to pursue research aimed at advancing understanding of human health and disease, and developing new therapies for neurological diseases, cancer, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and a host of other conditions.

“UCSF is honored to once again be among the nation’s leading recipients of these competitive grants. As a public institution, it is our privilege to pursue research that improves the health of all Americans,” said UCSF Chancellor Sam Hawgood, MBBS. “These funds empower our researchers, students, and trainees to be transformative leaders in their fields, driven by their curiosity to decode the fundamental principles of life and their passion for leveraging those basic discoveries to advance patient care and health equity.”

UCSF Schools Lead Their Fields Again in Research Funding

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The UCSF School of Medicine’s research, graduate-student training and fellowships for postdoctoral scholars topped the list of NIH funding for medical schools for the sixth year in a row, with $527 million in grant support. The UCSF School of Pharmacy ranked first in NIH grants for 2017 for the 38th consecutive year, with $34.3 million in grants supporting the school’s fundamental and clinical research and graduate training programs.

The School of Dentistry, which until 2017 had ranked first nationwide in NIH funding for 25 years, brought in $18.5 million in NIH grant funding in the past year, second only to the University of Michigan at $19.3 million. The School of Nursing brought in $8.9 million in 2017, remaining the top-funded public School of Nursing for the 15th year in a row.

All told, UCSF received 1,242 grants totaling $588.9 million in 2017 – including $69.2 million for long-term, specialized research centers on campus – with an additional $5 million in NIH contracts, a term for agreements under which UCSF scientists perform specific projects for the national research institutes.